Ahead of festive season, Maruti records 34% jump in passenger vehicle sales in Sept

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

• Maruti's domestic sales cross 150,000 mark in September, a 33.4% growth over last year.
• Compact cars see strongest 47.3% growth in dispatches followed by entry level cars at 35.7%.
• Inventory build up at dealerships in the run up to the festive season later this month the prime reason for better performance.
• Bajaj Auto also reported strong 24% growth in motorcycle dispatches at 219,500 units last month.

India's largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki India Ltd has reported a 34 percent growth in passenger vehicle sales in September 2020 over the previous year, signalling a rebound in demand and a build-up of inventory at dealership in anticipation of robust retail sales in the festive season that begins later this month.

The company dispatched a total of 147,912 units of passenger vehicles from its factory to dealerships last month against 110,454 units in September 2019. Overall domestic sales that includes its small commercial vehicle -- Super Carry van and the Toyota Glanza hatchback -- was higher by 33.4 percent at 150,040 units. Exports saw a 9 percent growth at 7,834 units, which put the growth of its overall sales during the month at 30.8 percent at 160,442 units.

Also read: 20 years of Maruti Alto: A slow starter that became the first car to top 4 million unit sales

This is the first month since the post lockdown era in March that Maruti has been able to dispatch more than 150,000 units in a month. This would inspire confidence after the company registered its worst ever quarter in history in the first quarter of this fiscal.

Maruti had posted an 81 percent drop in sales in Q1 at just 76,599 units, which in turn consigned its first quarterly financial loss of Rs 249 crore. In line with its performance, India's overall economy also registered a steep 23.9 percent contraction during the quarter, the worst ever in 24 years.

Also read: Maruti Alto emerges as India's bestselling car for 16th year in a row

The biggest jump in sales for the company last month came in the compact car segment that comprises bulk of its products like Swift, Dzire, Wagon R, Celerio, Ignis and Baleno, which saw a 47.3 percent growth at 84,213 units, followed by the entry level mini segment (Alto and S Presso) that registered a 35.7 percent growth at 27,246 units. Utility vehicles (Ertiga, S Cross, Brezza) registered a more sedate 10.1 percent growth at 23,699 units while its Eeco van saw a 12.8 percent growth at 11,220 units.

Two wheeler major Bajaj Auto also reported strong motorcycle sales of 219,500 units, a 24 percent jump over last September and a best ever export performance of 185,351 units-a 16 percent growth over last year. As a result its overall sales grew 20 percent at 404,851 units.

Also read: Maruti Suzuki Q1 results: Loss stands at Rs 249 crore, revenue falls 79% amid coronavirus

Also read: Bajaj Auto records 10% jump in sales in Sept; exports rise 14% to highest ever at 2.12 lakh units